When Nothing's Left
by Spirit Seer
Summary: The Akatsuki War has nearly torn the world apart. The final survivors are fighting the final battle. In their midst, two lovers will determine what is more important to them- victory, or each other. What do you choose when nothing's left? ItaSaku slight A


A/N: Hello, all! :D I'm back with another ItaSaku songfic!! xD Hope you enjoy!

"My Heart is Lost to You" copyright of Brooks & Dunn- I no own.

I really don't know how strong Konan is in battle, or her fighting style beyond she uses origami and I think she uses wings, so if I did something wrong, you are free to point it out. It'll be good for future knowledge, and I'll ask you to please forgive the error. I also have not read all of that's been released for the Shippuden manga, so please forgive me if you see something blatantly different. There are some more notes concerning this at the end, though, for what was done in here.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Naruto. That belongs to Masashi Kishimoto. I also do not own the awesome song called "My Heart is Lost to You". That belongs to the awesome duo Brooks N Dunn. I no own so please no sue. Everything is purely for entertainment purposes and I'm making no money off of this piece, though this piece I do claim.

Summary: The Akatsuki War has nearly torn the world apart. The final survivors are assembled and fighting the final battle. In their midst, two lovers will decide what is more important to them: victory, or each other. What do you choose when you have nothing left? ItaSaku

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**When Nothing's Left**

The moon showered its silver rain down upon the blood-ridden battleground as kunai after kunai clanged in the air and jutsus fired away at opponents. The destruction that bombarded the unfortunate scenery surrounding the shinobi was too great to know who was actually winning from one glance. The streaks of shinobi in the air and cries of battle were the only signs to be noticed that no one had yet won. After all, victory couldn't be claimed until the other side was no longer standing. The smaller number in the fighters simply meant that victory was all the more necessary, and quickly.

Haruno Sakura was caught in a dilemma that she shouldn't have been thinking about in the heat of battle. She should've been concentrating on eradicating the blemish of shinobi rogues known as the Akatsuki, without any other thought. They were the ones who had chased after her best friend. They were the ones who had abducted and nearly concluded Gaara's life. They were the ones who would take over the world with the jinchurikis they had stolen, if they had gathered them all. This was Konoha and the other nation's final chance to rid the remaining world of Akatsuki. If they fell in their endeavor, their world would fall with them, for they were being assisted with the remaining people of that world. The rest had been destroyed in the seemingly-perpetual Akatsuki War, and all sides had had casualties. However, all these reasons couldn't silence the thought that pervaded her focus since she was first handed what could've been her final mission scroll to the moment she drew her kunai to fight that final battle that would decide the victors of the war.

They would be fighting her love. She would be fighting her love.

Her mission was to kill him, as she knew his mission was to kill her. She had known that from the instant when that fated mission scroll first fell into her fingers to the moment her feet set foot upon the fighting ground.

But how could she fulfill it?

How could she destroy the only one to ever reciprocate her love, even if it had meant letting an Akatsuki criminal live, both then and now? How could she destroy the only person she had left now that everyone she loved and cared for was gone in the war that this very battle was deciding the outcome of?

She dodged a flying slip of paper, knowing that this particular attack could do more than simply bump or cause a paper cut but could possibly slice off her arm, as she fought against the female Akatsuki member whose name she didn't know. She was burning with grief over her fallen loved ones, but she knew she didn't have time to grieve now. She had to focus on her fight, so she continued to hold her tears at bay for a time when she could let them safely fall. Retaliating, she moved in, engaging a taijutsu battle. Dodging a roundhouse kick, Sakura aimed a chakra-filled punch that grazed her opponent, who was sent flying back. The Akastuki member rose, brushing away the blood that had dripped to her chin. They had been fighting for over two hours. It felt like a prolonged stalemate.

Sakura couldn't see a quick victory, just as she didn't see a sudden epiphany over what to do about her love.

Her opponent charged at her again with a back-sweep of her origami wings, and the fight continued once again, but Sakura still remained distracted in her thoughts. She was desperate for an answer to cut through the veil of her crushing grief.

Maybe the night sky would pour an epiphany of streaming light from heavens to give her the answer and free her of her sorrow. She surely needed one right now in her turmoil-filled thoughts.

She also knew that she shouldn't be allowing her thoughts to distract her in battle- _he_ taught her that- and especially in one as important as this one. But, unbidden, they still came, forcing themselves known in her mind….

She remembered how she had first met him, studying with him in the training grounds during her earlier academy days and pouring over enormous textbooks and volumes. He had been someone she could relate to, talk over scientific theories and mathematical equations and logic with, and not worry over anyone calling her a 'nerd' or 'geek' or laugh at her for her knowledge, or 'freak' for her large forehead. Itachi had actually enjoyed her company, saying it was rather cute to watch her struggling to lift the heavy books she would bring to talk with him about. He was someone who could think academically at her level, and beyond. She would soak up his explanations and knowledge like the desert sands with water.

And then he left, carrying a burden of death for the sake of all that know one would ever know about but the Sandaime, Danzou, and her, though no one would ever know that he told her the truth behind the Uchiha Massacre.

Sakura had been so desolate. She had lost her teacher, her academic companion, and her quiet friend, the only boy who didn't make fun of her forehead. But she knew that they would see each other again- he had promised her that. So she kept the promise she had made to him as best she could of watching over Sasuke, and tried her best to bide the time until he returned to her. After all, she still felt her deep friendship and care for him. She couldn't break that bond. It flowed deeper and stronger than the blood through her veins.

But, for all the time you wait, a little more faith is sometimes lost.

She began to wonder if he was ever going to return to her.

_**Maybe it was the moonlight**_

_**The scent of you on the breeze**_

_**Maybe it was your shadow that fell over me**_

_**Such a beautiful stranger**_

_**Eyes darker than coal**_

_**Your first look crossed the desert**_

_**Into my soul**_

Then, suddenly, he did, one night while she was traveling back from Suna several years later. She hadn't planned to be heading back to Konoha immediately after her visit with Gaara to deliver a scroll from the Hokage; but, the night had made her restless for reasons unknown, and impulsively she decided to leave that night against reason. She checked out of the inn she was staying in and was soon running along the still-warm desert sands, though the air was cool from the coming of the night.

And then, there he was in front of her, outlined by the soft rays of moonlight. His long hair was blowing in the caressing wind, its long tendrils carrying his unforgotten scent over to her. She knew it was him, even before he was standing right in front of her, taking in her appearance and how much she had grown. His eyes that matched the surrounding night seemed to pierce its way into her soul.

_**Mi corazon perdido en ti**_

_**My heart is lost to you**_

_**You have captured my love completely**_

_**My heart is lost to you**_

_**Oh my heart is lost to you**_

There he was- in front of her! Sakura felt her heart blossoming with a feeling that she hadn't felt before, and the ones she had nearly overwhelmed her. Excitement, joy, happiness- it was almost too much for her to take.

"Itachi!" She threw her arms around him, her fisted hands clinging to the fabric of his Akastuki cloak. "I've missed you so much…"

"I've missed you, too, Sakura…" he murmured, wrapping his arms around her and holding her close. She knew most couldn't sense it, and would think he didn't really mean it from only sight, but she could feel it in the quiet stillness, the firmness of his fingers- he had missed her as much as she had….

Sakura had just wanted that moment of being with him to last forever. As she stood there in Itachi's shadow beneath the light of the moon, suddenly she realized what she hadn't before: somewhere between friendship and their separation, her care had blossomed into love. Real love. Like a sudden light of epiphany, she realized that her heart was with Itachi.

She had lost her heart to him.

_**Maybe it was the music**_

_**The way it moved with your hair**_

_**Or the heat of the moment**_

_**That hung in the air**_

_**But when I saw you there dancing**_

_**Mesmerized by your gaze**_

_**There was some kind of magic**_

_**That led me away**_

Paper swooped down like angry birds (they might've even been formed like birds; Sakura didn't pay enough attention to the origami to notice other than to avoid getting hit) as Sakura raised her kunai to slash through the more dangerously close projectiles. A swift slice on her cheek informed her of one that made it through, and the blood dripping declared it broke the skin. Irritated from the continuous superficial cuts (but thankful she had avoided the lethal ones), she surged forward with her chakra scalpel, the Akatsuki member jerking forward with her origami wings to push her back and dodge the deadly slashes. Sakura continued swiping several more times, but still her blue-haired enemy avoided them.

A couple of minutes later, during which another short stalemate ensued, both shinobi stood facing each other, panting in the night, their slightly-bloodied kunais rimmed faintly with moonlight.

"_Great, my chakra supplies are getting low,"_ Sakura thought, wiping the sweat from her face with the back of her fingerless glove. _"I'd better think of something soon…."_

"_Well, my chakra is running out; but, from the looks of things, so is hers as well,"_ Konan surmised. _"I need to finish this quickly; this is taking too long. And with my speed slower than before, I don't want to risk a solid hit from her enhanced punches."_

Sakura raised her kunai contemplatively, her breathing heavy. Should she try to continue this fight on taijutsu, or continue with the chakra scalpels? Should she try ninjustu? Weapons? What would be the most effective against the origami user?

Konan raised her kunai. Sakura prepared herself for the attack to come.

And then he appeared. He arrived so swiftly and silently like a ghost, a shadow in the night. His gaze swept the scene before him, finally resting on Sakura. It took all of Sakura's training to hide the happiness from her face. However, when he locked onto her eyes, and she caught the ever-so-slight lighter glint, she knew that he had seen her happiness and was inwardly pleased as well, though they couldn't outwardly show it with others around. They were supposed to be enemies that hated each other with a bitter passion, not secretly loving each other.

He finally turned to his comrade, the hidden light for Sakura to see now gone. "Go, Konan. I'll finish this."

Konan looked at him. "Are you sure, Itachi? I'll be done in a couple of minutes. You don't need to interfere."

Itachi just fixed his piercing gaze on her in response. "Leader sent for you."

Slowly, Konan nodded. "All right," she said, "watch out for her chakra scalpels and enhanced punches. They hurt," she added, before she backed off to search for her partner, hoping he was alright.

Once she was gone, Itachi commented, "It's been a long time, Sakura."

Sakura nodded, still keeping her emotions in check. "It has." Putting away her bloodied kunai, she fisted her gloves, gathering chakra into her hands.

Itachi cocked his eyebrow questioningly.

"Well, this has to look convincing, doesn't it? How will it look if I simply ran off with you into the night?" she said softly, trying to hide a quiet laugh that was begging to escape.

Itachi smirked, his Sharingan blazing brightly like newly born stars as he heard her words of promise echo again in his mind. He hoped she would fulfill it. "Show me how much stronger you've become," he whispered with anticipation.

Sakura's heart felt like it was going to burst with happiness as she brought her fist crashing down into the ground. The rocks burst forth and the battle began, and they were like two illuminated dancers in the night, finding music in the war zone for a deadly and graceful dance among death.

Sakura ghosted from step to step in their sparring dance. She watched as Itachi slid effortlessly from technique to technique with the fluidness of water, whose currents kept the flow of battle constant. She could've gone on forever in their intoxicating waltz of war….

Then, suddenly, Sakura felt the epiphany she had desired endow her with its radiating brilliance. She knew what she would do now.

She would follow the path that had been set before her long ago with the promise she made to him. Her promise that she would someday be strong, and that someday she would follow him. She had no more chains binding her anywhere anymore to restrict her decision. She was free. Free to follow where freedom's desires and whims led her. And she knew which road of freedom she was going to follow.

The road that led her to the one that stole her heart so long ago.

_**Mi corazon perdido en ti**_

_**My heart is lost to you**_

_**You have captured my love completely**_

_**My heart is lost to you**_

_**Oh my heart is lost to you**_

Half and hour later, Sakura was trapped within the tsukiyomi. She was standing on a flat plane, yet it was without substance. She didn't know what to make of her surroundings as she surveyed them, adrenaline still pumping through her system.

"You've grown stronger, Sakura," Itachi murmured appreciatively, as he materialized in front of her.

Sakura felt herself glowing with internal joy at his praise as she gazed upon him with her full attention. "Thank you." It took all her skill to hold her composure as she said this. She didn't want to disappoint him by showing she couldn't hold a mask.

Itachi's eyes lit ever so slightly. Sakura knew he was smiling inside, and felt his tacit allowance to lose her mask. She dropped it happily. Finally, after a moment's silence, she joked,

"Aren't you going to carry me away, oh thief of the night's shadows?"

Itachi's lip curved as he responded, "You can walk on your own."

Sakura laughed. Her eyes were bright as she said, "Well, you're already the thief of my heart. You've stolen my love. You might as well take the package deal and steal me, too. I'm ready to fulfill my promise to you."

And then she was in his arms, sharing a passionate kiss within his tsukiyomi world that would fade when they returned to reality.

When they finally broke apart, Itachi murmured, "Are you prepared to leave everything behind? This won't be an easy path."

Brushing her fingers gently against his cheek, she murmured, "This decision was made when I lost my heart in you. I broke the law of Konoha by loving you, and now that I'm forced to finally face the choice, I have no desire to turn my back on what I want and feel. It's too late for that now. My heart is where you are, Itachi, and I want to follow you wherever you go. As I've already gone past corny in this speech, I'll end this with a request to finish this shadow fairy tale and carry me away already."

Itachi raised an amused eyebrow at her unusual choice of words. "Shadow fairy tale?"

"You're carrying me off into the night, remember? In the original fairy tales, the prince and princess are always on the same side, which we obviously are not, and the princess is carried off into the sunset, which is impossible when it's midnight," she concluded. "Thus, I have dubbed this a shadow fairy tale."

Itachi chuckled with a slight shake of his head that did not escape Sakura, who did a cute glare at him in return. "As you desire," he replied. Reaching down, he scooped her into his arms as Sakura gave a cry of joyful laughter.

Sobering for a moment, he gazed down at the woman he loved in his arms. He murmured, "This is your last chance. Are you sure you wish to throw away your home so casually?"

Sobering as well from the fairy tale moment, she murmured back, "Konoha and Akatsuki are in their final battle. I'm sure you know that well, Itachi. By the battle's end, they'll have destroyed each other, and there will be no one left. I do not wish to watch as the remains of my village and the world on both sides fall as they fight each other. By the end, there will be no village for me to go back to, and there will be no more Akatsuki for you, either. Our strength is too evenly matched. We'll destroy each other, and they'll be nothing left."

She bowed her head, feeling her eyes blurring as she recalled the faces of the friends and family she loved. Her fists tightening, she murmured, her voice colored with emotion,

"Everyone I cared for in Konoha or elsewhere has already been killed in our war. Tsunade was killed by Leader. Kakashi is dead. My parents were killed years ago. Ino was slain in battle two weeks ago. Neji is dead. Gaara, Temari, and Kankuro have finally fallen after weeks of constant fighting, along with the Sand Village. Their remaining survivors are fighting with us today. Hinata was killed 6 months ago. Orochimaru finally stole Sasuke's body. There's no rescuing him now. My other comrades are dying as we speak. And Naruto…." Sakura paused, her throat having tightened as she counted off the names of those she held dear to her. When she arrived at the final name, it was difficult for her to face the reality of what had happened to her best friend, though he was so close to Sakura he was more like a brother to her. She couldn't speak. Finally, she finished in a choked whisper, "…Naruto killed himself in a wave of despair two nights ago, trying to keep the world safe by destroying the bijuu that Akatsuki sought. Everyone is gone for me. What made Konoha is destroyed, and it won't be rebuilt. …You're all I have left." A tear broke free from her sorrow-filled eyes and she wiped it viciously. Her voice cracked, however, and her internal pain was evident as she cried,

"I just want a happy ending in this nightmare, one moment where I can wake up and not feel as though I'm still dreaming a black future. I want a sunrise, a star, a light of hope in this war-torn world of weeping and darkness. I want to be able to spend my time with you without having to watch my back or fear of our being discovered and being taken away from you. You're my only happiness I have left, my only remaining light. Is it wrong to want more than anything to hold onto that light forever, and to never let it go? Is it wrong to wish for an eternity of light when you've been living a lifetime of darkness?"

Facing him fully again when she was done clearing her tears, she whispered, "Would I make any other decision? Could I?" As an afterthought, she added, "Would you?"

Itachi stared at Sakura for a long moment, lost in her words and the strength of her emotional sorrow. Finally, shaking his head, he murmured, "No."

Smiling slightly as she allowed happiness from being with him to override her grief and color her face again, Sakura replied, "Then ride me off into the moonlight, thief of my heart."

Smiling in a half-smirk, Itachi closed his eyes, releasing the tsukiyomi as he felt the Akatsuki tie in his ring break. Leader must have been killed. Akatsuki was now no more.

He was free to leave, just like Sakura.

Smiling, he said to her, "The moonlight awaits."

The dream world dissipated. Finding themselves standing on the bloodied battlefield once again, they saw the battle was still on with a vengeance, but it was obvious that they were too evenly matched for one to overcome the other. Turning to Itachi, Sakura simply grinned and made a small gesture with her arms. Smirking at her with tacit understanding, he scooped her into his arms bridal-style like he had done in tsukiyomi.

Jumping into the burning woods, they left the war far behind them, leaving nothing behind.

_**Mi corazon perdido en ti**_

_**My heart is lost to you**_

_**You have captured my love completely**_

_**My heart is lost to you**_

Now, there was only them.

Two lovers, thieves of the other's hearts, going off into the moonlight now tainted red in the bloody night. It wasn't quite the romantic ending of a normal fairy tale, but it wasn't quite a fairy tale in their eyes anyway. Shadow fairy tale, if it needed a title. But whether it was a fairy tale or a shadow fairy tale, and what their respective endings represented, it didn't matter to them.

They had each other. It was the only thing they had left in their destroyed world.

And so the thieves of their hearts stole away into the night, a new chapter for their lives born from the bloody end of another.

_**My heart is lost to you**_

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**A/N:** I know that in Romeo and Juliet they were on the opposite sides, and I could've used that allusion, but I didn't think they had Shakespeare in the Naruto world, so I decided it was better not to allude to Shakespeare.

Also, I believe Sasuke kills Orochimaru and Kabuto when he leaves Sound and forms Team Snake, but that's just what I've gathered off of fanfiction. I haven't read that far into the manga. However, for the purposes of this story (and since I couldn't come up with anything else half decent for what could've happened to him) that does not happen in this tale of two lovers. His body is stolen instead and Orochimaru's reign continues.

Sorry if this came off as cheesy or something. I was trying to create the romance-in-wartorn-battlefied-during-the-final-war thing. xD lol Please tell me what you think and R&R!! I would greatly appreciate your thoughts (though if you flame, all I ask is for you to please be constructive). Thanks!


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